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Thread: New thicknesser
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24th February 2019, 04:49 PM #1Novice
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New thicknesser
Howdy all,
I know this subject may have been covered in many different posts before but haven’t seem to found one source.
Long and short I’m going to commit to a thicknesser. Been on the list for a while but recently been asked to make a number of bench/table tops with recycled timber. All for friends/family etc. Mainly in Aus hardwood, but from multiple pieces as opposed to a slab - no more than 500 wide if that.
Somewhere between $500-$1000, second hand maybe.
Questions I have;
Brands such as benchtops dewalt, metabo etc. or a second hand carbatec/jet etc?
If I’m looking at this price range is a thicknesser/jointer worth a look?
Spiral bits - not sure but these seem to be better quality? Can all thicknessers take these, what’s the benefit?
What other considerations should I think about. Will be built into a work bench with in/out feeds hopefully!
Cheers all.
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6th March 2019, 03:26 PM #2Senior Member
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Hi Gatesy, others will know more than me, but a benchtop unit is usually only 300 or 350mm wide. These will be your best option, price wise. They do a pretty good job, I have a JET and I can't fault it. The spiral cutters by all accounts are great for a variety of reasons, but they are very expensive to replace. So if you are just doing bench/table tops I reckon blades would be fine. I have never used a spiral, but they apparently give a better finish, last longer and I think you can change sections rather than whole blade if you get a chip, but don't hold me to this. I have put a fair bit of Merbau, red gum and Tas Oak through mine, and the finish is very good, only a light sand needed. I think the biggest issue with the bench tops is snipe. There are a thousand youtube videos on how to minimise this, so check them out if you go ahead. I saw a Mathias Wandel video in which he compared a DeWalt Thicknesser to a cheapie, and in his opinion the cheapie was just as good if not better. I am sure the carbatec & Hafco units are pretty good, but am happy with the Jet. I think they are around $550 new at Total Tools. good luck
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7th March 2019, 11:01 AM #3SENIOR MEMBER
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https://www.machineryhouse.com.au/W8...hoCe18QAvD_BwE
The spiral head has several advantages. In your case the ability to simply rotate an insert will be a godsend given you intend to mill recycled timber. If you use conventional straight knives you will quickly tire of regrinding constantly or if disposables, spending money on frequent replacement.
I have the Hafco one above, and it's been great.
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7th March 2019, 01:36 PM #4GOLD MEMBER
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Just dissolving some of the marketing BS for someone who is looking....
The "spiral head" in the cheaper units is not a true helical spiral head, it's simply a segmented cutter, but the cutting edges are still at parallel to the axis of the head. The helical ones (eg the shelix aftermarket one or ones marked "helical" on vendor websites) are not parallel.
The segmented head does mean you have a heap of little individual places where if you knick something you have a localised issue rather than having to take out and regrind the whole flat knife to just remove the ding, but they aren't the nirvana the helical spiral of the bigger machines or the shelix after-market jobbies are.
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7th March 2019, 07:03 PM #5SENIOR MEMBER
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Having used both, I can state unequivocally that the spiral vs helical difference is marginal at best - no where near a "nirvana" difference. Nearly all of the advantages are present in both styles of segmented cutter head - the only real difference is the potential for a slightly better cut due to the shearing action of the shelix style.
Rather than regurgitate it here, see this link for a full rundown on advantages:
https://www.wwgoa.com/article/spiral...upgrade-price/
I will 100% agree that there is a big difference between a cheaper planer (the lunch box style bench-top units) compared with a larger machine with cast iron parts. Larger beds, heavy duty rollers, bearings etc all play a big part in ultimate standard of the cut, as does machine build quality inherent in a big industrial (e.g. Felder) machine. But this is due to the quality & robustness of a big machine vs a portable pressed sheet metal unit - not really due to a difference between spiral vs helical head.
If the OP can afford it, a stationary thicky would be great, but the indicated budget is unlikely to pay for such a machine.
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8th March 2019, 07:44 AM #6GOLD MEMBER
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aaand just because it was recently quoted, I'll throw a more informative quote (than my comments above) out there - this post.
I totally agree RossM, there's no hope to get a Helical Head on a unit in that budget. My personal choice was to get a Carbatec spiral head lunchbox unit, and I found one secondhand
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8th March 2019, 08:59 AM #7
For your budget I recommend a new Carbatec TH-BX33P or the Hafco T13S. The Hafco is a couple of hundred bucks cheaper but more lightweight so is probably more suited to softwoods; the extra mass of the CT unit dampens down vibration and resists flex better when cutting hardwoods. The heads though are identical segmented cutter heads.
These units are supplied with HSS inserts and the OEM sell replacements in packs of ten, and are expensive. You can however buy better inserts at a lower cost from SJE tools; when I bought my CT 3 or 4 years ago a full set of 26 TC inserts from him only cost about $100 shipped, whereas a pack of 10 HSS cutters from Carbatec were $70+ shipping.
These segmented head thickies are more than adequate for DIY use. I’ve put many many metres of QLD Red Gum through mine and the cutters still haven’t been rotated once. Prior to that I had a GMC sraight blade unit that was ok but tore out on any reversing grain.
Big question: DO YOU HAVE A DUST EXTRACTOR, 4” INLET MINIMUM? If not then you should probably stop now until you can afford both a DE as well as a thicky. The mess generated from a thicknesser is phenominal so a DE is really important. A cheap one can do if used purely as a method of collecting the gross waste and you use additional respiratory protection to protect yourself.
Dust extraction is another topic altogether, have a look at the three “stickies” in the Dust Extraction sub-forum.Nothing succeeds like a budgie without a beak.
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9th March 2019, 12:16 PM #8Intermediate Member
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Some good information here
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9th March 2019, 12:59 PM #9
If you are going to buy a spiral head unit get one with the carbide inserts. If you just get the standard HSS inserts you have the same as a normal straight blade thicknesser so will go blunt just as quick. Yes you have the option of changing out individual areas but carbide will last many times longer and that would be important when dressing recycled timber because it could have all sorts of things embedded in it.
That unit that RossM links to has the spiral head but only with HSS inserts. A full set of carbide can be brought for under $100 here so you would still be under your $1000 limit. None of the bench top thicknessers will do more than 330mm wide as far as I know.
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